Wada, a soft-tossing, strike-throwing lefty, starred for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks before becoming an unrestricted free agent Dec. 1. He did not need to be posted — there was no bidding process for negotiating rights — and, reportedly, several other teams expressed interest in Wada, including the Washington Nationals and Pittsburgh Pirates.

Here’s more:

Listed at 5 feet 10, 170 pounds, Wada consistently throws his fastball in the mid-to-high 80s, but he survives on a deceptive, three-quarters delivery and the ability to throw several pitches for strikes. He also misses bats, earning him the nickname "Dr. K of Tokyo" while in college. Throughout his career, he has maintained a strikeout-walk ratio of 3-to-1 or better. In 2011, he was 16-5 with a 1.53 ERA in 1842/3 innings with the Hawks. He struck out 168 batters and walked 40.

It’s good that the Orioles are *finally* using the international market to fill their roster after many years of seemingly bypassing it.